Josh and Sam are two brothers facing change, their mother is about to marry a French accountant and the kids are sent to go live with their father in Florida. Meanwhile Josh tells Sam that ... See full summary »

The daughter of a brilliant but mentally disturbed mathematician, recently deceased, tries to come to grips with her possible inheritance: his insanity. Complicating matters are one of her father's ex-students who wants to search through his papers and her estranged sister who shows up to help settle his affairs.

A serial killer played by Jake Gyllenhaal travels through the hippest parties on a killing spree of Dalston hipsters. Gyllenhaal masters the role of unsuspecting dark-eyed psycho as he ... See full summary »

Storyline

Josh and Sam are two brothers facing change, their mother is about to marry a French accountant and the kids are sent to go live with their father in Florida. Meanwhile Josh tells Sam that he is a "S.A.M." that is going to be sent to Africa to fight in a war and that Canada is a safe haven for any S.A.M. unwilling to fight. The cross-country journey begins when the 2 boys think they killed a drunk and steal his car en route to Canada where they encounter The Liberty Maid. Will Josh & S.A.M. make it to Canada or will they wish they should have never left home. Written by
Ryan Harder <hotshotharder@hotmail.com>

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

Did You Know?

Trivia

It is rumored that the script for Josh and S.A.M. is based on the real-life events in the life of Josh and Sam Rosen in 1990. While not as dramatic, these two brothers embarked on a similar misadventure in Woodbridge, CT, involving a stolen car and police chase following a family squabble. The two were eventually found by authorities hiding in their friend Brad Taylor's tree house. Brad Taylor was reading a book on a bench elsewhere at the time. See more »

Goofs

The Kotex on Sam's forehead appears and disappears between shots when they are sleeping at the grain elevator, and theb re-appears in the car. See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

User Reviews

Josh and Sam is actually a brilliant film. It is unfortunate that it has been panned by so many who fail to understand it and refuse to give the film a fair shake. History will redeem this movie; it is one of the best I have ever seen.

The soundtrack alone would make this movie worth seeing. Thomas Newman (Fried Green Tomatoes, Shawshank Redemption, Road to Perdition) is one of Hollywood's best musical talents, and he scores Josh and Sam beautifully in his trademark hypnotizing style.

Many people are too hard-hearted to appreciate films like Josh and Sam, but that is no reason to say that it is a 'bad' film. It is a tender film. But a good one. And it is internally consistent. Psychologically true. The real fault of Josh and Sam is that it had incredibly bad marketing. "Why run away from home when you can drive?" Whoever thought that tagline up should be shot. And the box cover for the VHS was just as ridiculous. In fact, based on the marketing, I am surprised that I ever watched Josh and Sam, but my brother had somehow seen it at random and after literally years of persuading he finally got the rest of us to watch it. We were blown away.

Josh and Sam is not a children's film, it is just an old style family friendly movie. A throwback to a time before our social entertainments had become commodified and delineated by target demographics. In that sense, as far as genre goes, it is the same type of presentation as J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter novels -- it has something to offer viewers of all ages.

I would happily pay $50 for a proper widescreen DVD of Josh and Sam. It's sad that the movie has never been released on DVD. But, considering how the film was sold, it's not entirely surprising. Josh and Sam is an emotionally complex film about brothers running away from home and getting in over their heads. More "A River Runs Through It" than "Spy Kids", this is a movie, first and foremost, about human relationships.

Among people who have actually seen it, Josh and SAM has a lot of fans. In fact, it is quite a minority who actually think it is a BAD film (check the votes). "Josh and SAM" isn't for everyone, but it is a very good movie.

15 of 15 people found this review helpful.
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